Chapter 166: Chapter 161: Homeward Heart i


    Trantor: 549690339 I


    With sixteen hundred taels of silver money, if one were to return to the countryside to buynd and live afortable life, they could immediately be a true smallndlord.


    Even if an acre of good farnd cost twelve or thirteen taels of silver money, sixteen hundred taels would be enough to buy more than a hundred acres.


    Owning more than one hundred acres ofnd is the minimum standard for bing andlord.


    So one could only be considered a smallndlord.


    As for people like Wang Furen and Xu Zhenchang, who only have a dozen or so acres ofnd and assets of two or three hundred taels of silver money, they are far from beingndlords. At most, they can be called wealthy peasants.


    Even so, they surpass more than 99% of the poption.


    As long as they manage their affairs steadily and safely, they will have no worries about food and clothing for a lifetime.


    Qin Niu hadn’t yet decided how to use the sixteen hundred taels of silver money. After returning, he would definitely need to make a good n, as squandering it all on gluttony and luxury was certainly not an option.


    The insect cmity is currently wreaking havoc, and it could easily lead to famine, affecting the value of thend greatly.


    If the insect cmity can be stopped in the short term, it would be good.


    If it can’t be stopped for a long time, the price ofnd will drop to an infuriatingly low level.


    Qin Niu nned to save more money; if the opportunity arose, he wouldn’t mind bing the localndlord. Even if he couldn’t reach the level of the Yan Family, at least he could own over a hundred acres of good farnd.


    The carriage traveled at an unhurried pace on the road.


    After more than a quarter of an hour, the carriage came to a stop.


    “Master Qin, please alight here! This is a token that the young head of the family asked me to give you. If you encounter grave danger within the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, you can show this token. Unless the other party ignores our Fang Family, it will surely keep you safe. Also, the next time you enter or leave the Fang mansion, you can use this token for free ess and won’t be subjected to any inspection,”


    Uncle Heizi handed over a rather hefty silver token to him.


    The front bore the words “Guest Retainer of the Fang Family.”


    On the back, Qin Niu’s name was engraved.


    In addition, the token was adorned with many strange patterns. These could be simr to anti-counterfeiting marks.


    The token felt like it was made of silver money.


    It was possible that other metals were mixed in as well.


    Without a word, Young Master Fang had made Qin Niu a guest retainer of the Fang Family, without any discussion.


    “Please thank Young Master Fang for his generous favor on my behalf!”


    What else could Qin Niu say?


    After receiving it, he carefully stowed the token close to his body.


    “Take care! Don’t mention your visit to the Fang Family to anyone! Just head out in this direction.”


    Uncle Heizi said his farewell and quickly drove the carriage away.


    The old man might seem ordinary, but being so trusted and relied upon by the young master of the Fang Family, he must be far from simple.


    With the guest retainer token from the Fang Family, Qin Niu was essentially under their protection.


    Afterward, his safety quotient in ck Tiger City would significantly increase.


    As for the countryside, even the Yan Family would definitely not dare to touch him at this point.


    Compared to a behemoth like the Fang Family, the Yan Family was likely negligible.


    He surveyed his surroundings, finding himself in a somewhat narrow alley, nked by high walls.


    There are many residences of wealthy families in the city, withrge houses and courtyards.


    For the sake of privacy and safety, they usually build very tall walls to separate themselves from the outside world.


    “Not sure what part of the city this is? First, I need to find Xiao Qing, then buy some books before hurrying back to Shuangfeng Vige!”


    Qin Niu followed the direction Uncle Heizi had pointed out and continued to walk forward.


    The alley wasn’t very long, and upon exiting, he could see the main street.


    “This… isn’t this the inn where Xiao Qing stays?”


    Qin Niu was startled, realizing that in ck Tiger City, the Fang Family had eyes and ears everywhere; his every move had long been under their surveince.


    Luckily, the Fang Family bore no ill will; otherwise, his slight cunning would have been of no use at all.


    “Master!”


    Xiao Qing had been anxiously waiting.


    Fearing that Qin Niu wouldn’t want her and would abandon her in the city, she sat at the doorway waiting. Seeing him appear, she rushed over joyfully and clung to Qin Niu’s waist, acting coquettishly.


    “I’ve finished what I needed to do, take our luggage down, I’ll go pay the bill. We’re going home.”


    “Mmm, I’ll go get it right away!”


    She scampered off like a bullet towards their room on the second floor.


    After settling the ount, Qin Niu took the basket from Xiao Qing’s hands. Suddenly remembering something, he pulled out a few pastries he had taken from the Fang Family.


    “You haven’t had breakfast yet, have you? I saved a few for you.”


    Xiao Qing took them and after sniffing them, she immediately drooled with desire.


    She examined one of the pastries.


    “These pastries must be expensive, right? They look so exquisite I’ve seen others selling them in shops for fifty or sixty wen a catty.”


    “Someone else treated me to them, so I actually don’t know the price,”


    Qin Niu had been preupied with eating while served attentively by two beautiful maids, and he really hadn’t thought about how much the pastries cost.


    “Mmm… it’s so delicious, soft and tasty. The food of these big households is truly different. Thank you, master.”


    She ate happily.


    Walking beside Qin Niu, her little eyes were surveying the entire street.


    Qin Niu took her to the book market and bought some books, filling half a basket, and carried it home on his back.


    Although all these books were handwritten, they consisted of only general knowledge, the kind that wasmon in the streets, so they weren’t expensive.


    Even though he now had more than sixteen hundred taels of silver money, he adhered to the principle of saving where possible when purchasing books.


    If there were old books, he wouldn’t buy new ones.


    After leaving the city, Qin Niu and Xiao Qing hastened their pace forward.


    Xiao Qing lowered her head and bit her lip as she followed behind.


    “Master… may I visit my grandfather’s grave? I’ll just kowtow three times and then leave; I won’t take up too much of your time,” she said.


    She couldn’t help but make this request, after all.


    “Aren’t we heading that way already?”


    Qin Niu knew the route well.


    “Oh, it does seem like it, thank you, master.”


    She looked around, and then a smile spread across her face.


    The master and servant pair reached the grave, where the tombstone had already been erected.


    “This is the incense, candles, and paper money I specially bought in the city for you to burn!”


    Qin Niu took out the items he had purchased for the offering.


    “Wuwu… You are so good to me!”


    As Xiao Qing took the incense and paper money, she could no longer hold back her tears and was visibly moved.


    “Now that I have be your only support in this world, naturally, I should treat you well. Besides, your grandfather entrusted you to me in his final moments; it’s only right to take good care of you,” he said.


    Qin Niu patted her on the head.


    “Come on, the red candles have been lit; all you need to do is burn the paper money,” he instructed.


    He lit the incense and candles, cing them on the altar before the grave.


    Xiao Qing knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times, also quietly offering prayers to her deceased grandfather, the content of which was unknown.


    “All right!”


    Afterpleting the offering, she took one more longing look at the grave before following Qin Niu to leave.


    One could feel that her attachment to Qin Niu had grown stronger, bing more intimate.


    People are not emotionless like grass and trees; she too was a person with flesh and blood.


    Although she was young, she could naturally sense who truly cared for her.


    Upon their return to Shuangfeng Vige, everything was as it always was.


    The only difference was the day-and-night changes to Qin Niu’s house. The two old mud huts were gone, reced by a grand and majestic mansion.


    Green tiles on top of blue bricks, it looked very exquisite and beautiful.


    Everything at home remained unchanged.


    Even though he did note homest night, still, no one dared to step half a foot into his house.


    Xiao Nui was still the same, snoring asleep.


    In contrast, the newly acquired little turtle in the fish pond had already adapted to the new environment, swimming and crawling around everywhere. Despite being a Grade Three Diamond Ink Turtle, it was still so timid.


    Startled by the noise, it instantly hid at the bottom of the pond, motionless.


    Qin Niu shook his head with a smile.


    “Xiao Qing, go and cut some wild boar meat to throw into the fish pond,” he said.


    “Okay!”


    She agreed and went inside to cut some meat to feed the Diamond Ink Turtle.


    Meanwhile, Qin Niu shouldered the basket and hurried into the mountains.


    Arriving in front of the Termite Nest, the Ant Queen was still in the midst of evolution.


    Fourth, sensing his presence, crawled out of the nest right away.


    Suddenly, a number of Grade Three termites came out of the nest.


    All were there to wee their owner.


    Qin Niu returned the few termites he carried with him back to the nest.


    “Master, it seems like you have some bugs on you,” Fourth warned.


    “Bugs?”


    Qin Niu instinctively checked his body.


    Had some bugs crawled onto him when he entered the mountains?


    It was possible.


    Bugs were everywhere in the mountains, after all.


    But he searched his coat and found nothing.


    “Fourth, where is the bug?” Qin Niu asked Fourth.